SOUP SATURDAY: FRENCH SOUPS

Posted in Soups by


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It’s the third Saturday of the month, and we have the soup event organized by Wendy!  Guess what? This month yours truly is hosting, and I chose as my theme French Soups… Why? Because we’ve had so many great soups while living in Paris. Yes, French Onion soup is a classic, and I am sure someone in our group will feature it in a blog post, but one very fond memory I have is a fennel soup I enjoyed very late at night in a bistrot near our apartment, Le Café du Marché. It was comforting, soothing, luscious, yet it seemed so simple. On a side note, the word for fennel in French is a tricky one for me to pronounce, so I would always get in to hyperventilation mode when ordering anything in a menu containing it. Once you get traumatized by a word, it’s pretty hard to overcome the anxiety to say it out loud. But, I digress. This (deep breath) fenouil soup is wonderful! If one day I materialize my desire of serving soup shots for guests as they enter our home for a dinner party, this will be in their little cups.
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FENNEL SOUP WITH ALMOND-MINT TOPPING
(adapted from Cooking Light)

1 tablespoon olive oil
3 medium size fennel bulbs, thinly sliced
1 shallot, chopped cup chopped onion
1 celery stalk, chopped  
1 teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste
2 ½ to 3 cups water
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/2 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained (about 7.5 ounces)
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
3 tablespoons small fresh mint leaves
1 tablespoon fresh fennel tops, minced
lemon rind to taste 

 Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil; swirl to coat. Add fennel, shallots and celery, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, cook for a couple of minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover the pan and cook 6 minutes or until crisp-tender (do not brown), stirring occasionally.

Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, a little black pepper, 2 ½ cups water, white wine vinegar, and beans. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Transfer the contents to a blender and puree until smooth. If needed, do it in two batches. Taste and adjust seasoning. If soup seems too thick, add a little more water.

For the topping, combine almonds, mint, fennel tops, and lemon zest. Ladle soup in bowls, and top with the crunchy almond mixture.

ENJOY!

 to print the recipe, click here
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Comments: The original recipe from Cooking Light used a full can of beans, but I held back a little, felt that it could overpower the delicate fennel taste. I really like the way my soup turned out, it was creamy, with just a subtle hint of the cannelini around, the main flavor of fennel definitely shinning through.  As to the topping, you can use a heavy hand as in the first photo, or add just a touch.  Whatever rocks your boat…
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Before I leave, let me invite you to see the collection of French Soups made by my virtual friends.
Click on the InLinkz below, and get ready to fly to France!
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 Sweet memories by the Seine….
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https://static.inlinkz.com/cs2.js

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ONE YEAR AGO: Eataly

TWO YEARS AGO: Spaghetti Squash Perfection

THREE YEARS AGO: Skinny Eggplant Parmigiana

FOUR YEARS AGO: Supernova Meets Wok

FIVE YEARS AGO: 500 Posts and The Best Thing I ever made

SIX YEARS AGO: Back in Los Angeles

SEVEN YEARS AGO: White House Macaroni and Cheese

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Korean-Style Pork with Asian Slaw

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33 thoughts on “SOUP SATURDAY: FRENCH SOUPS”

  4. Can you add your soup to the link? I noticed it was missing. But I came here anyway cause I knew you’d have a great soup to share. I guess I have to get over my fear of cooking fennel so I can try this. I love the taste of it, but have never used it.

    Liked by 1 person

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  6. Fennel is one of the great underappreciated and underutilized ingredients in American cooking. You do see many Italian-American households still using their beloved “finocchio” of course, and when bouillabaisse enjoyed its 15 minutes a decade ago there was certainly a spike in usage. But otherwise, it is nowhere near as prevalent as one sees in Europe, which is a shame. Good for you for making and posting such a wonderful looking dish using it. Bravo!

    Liked by 1 person

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  8. Either you love fennel or you don’t. The anise flavor just sends me to the moon. We eat a lot of it in Italian dishes and love to crunch on it raw. I am making this recipe right now as one fennel bulb remains in my frig and must get cleaned out before leaving for Thanksgiving holiday. I will be adding a touch of fennel seeds as I lack enough of the main ingredient and have substituted some homemade chicken broth (also needs to be used) instead of water. .I’m sure it will give me a good idea of the flavor profile and enough for 2. I love French food and I trust their palate instincts. Thanks for posting. Happy Thanksgiving!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  10. Your soup is gorgeous. What a wonderful post with the trip down memory lane. The photo of you and Phil is wonderful too. Thanks so much for such a great theme. I can’t wait to try all of the recipes.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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